


Lover Boy

by TheBeautyOfTheHeights



Category: In the Heights - Miranda
Genre: Abandonment Issues, Canon Divergence, Fluff, Freeform, It starts the morning after the blackout and it explains all that happens next, It's pretty much divergence from the end of Blackout and on, Like, M/M, No Smut, Panic Attacks, Small Bits of Spanish, Sorry m'dudes I can't write smut to save my life, This is just cute fluff that I started last week
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-10
Updated: 2016-11-19
Packaged: 2018-08-30 04:01:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8517757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBeautyOfTheHeights/pseuds/TheBeautyOfTheHeights
Summary: The blackout happened, it's in the past and can be forgotten.What it triggers, however, can never be.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING: IM FAIRLY NEW TO IN THE HEIGHTS (I KNOW I'M REALLY LATE FOR IT BUT SHHHSHSHSH) SO CORRECT ME ON CANON INFO THAT I FUCK UP, OKAY?

There were two things that Usnavi noticed when he got back to the bodega.

One, the empty Roman Candle case on the ground outside.

Two, the grate was crooked.

Confused, he headed to the apartment. The next thing that he noticed was a note on the door. He tore it down and held it in his hands. It was definitely Sonny’s handwriting, but it was sloppily, almost hastily, written.

‘ _ Usnavi, _

_ He helped me last night, so let him stay until I can check the bandages and he wakes up.  _

_ He burned his hand on the Roman Candle that helped stop the riot.  _

_ Let him stay, please. _

_ -Sonny _ ’

He was even more confused than he was before as he unlocked the door. Opening it slowly, he next noticed that there was the scent of candle smoke in the air. He walked further in and closed the door, checking the kitchen to see if Sonny was awake. He wasn’t, but there was a roll of gauze and the package of medical pads on the counter.

Everything clicked when he walked into the living room.

Sonny was asleep on the couch. But, the thing that clicked was that he was laying on Pete. Sonny was tucked in between the couch and Pete, who had his arm around the other’s shoulder. The hand that he could see had gauze wrapped around it. Sonny, on the other hand, had one arm over Pete’s chest and the other wrapped weirdly around the arm that was on his shoulder. He had a sleepy smile on his face as he readjusted for a split second, then nuzzled his head into Pete’s chest.

First, he felt anger because he never really liked Pete in the first place.

Then, he felt relief because even though he didn’t like the younger, Pete had kept his cousin safe.

A small smile drifted onto his face as he walked to go and change. The bodega had to open soon, but he’d let Sonny sleep for just a bit longer. 

He could be lenient about his cousin’s lateness just this one time.

 

\----

 

After he got changed, he walked back out to check on them. Sonny was now awake and playing with Pete’s right hand. He pressed his fingers to Pete’s lightly before letting them settle back on his chest and just repeated that. Walking to the door of the kitchen, which was right in front of the two, Usnavi cleared his throat.

The younger’s head snapped up, a look that seemed to be a mix of fear and surprise flitted over his face.

“He was here through the riot,” Usnavi asked quietly.

“Tried to get me to leave so I wouldn’t get hurt,” Sonny smiled and broke eye contact, focusing on Pete’s hand that he was still playing with. “Told him I had to protect the bodega, so he set the Roman Candle off as a distraction for the rioters. Was so worried that his hands were shaking when he lit it and the sparks burned his hand. I brought him here, patched him up, made him sleep, and I ended up falling asleep as well.” He looked up at his cousin. “Are you upset?”

“He kept you safe. I can make an exception.” His smile widened. “Something goin’ on between you two?” The smile suddenly dropped from the younger’s face as it reddened. “I mean, you’re so comfortable around him. You _ visibly _ relax when he comes around. People get suspicious eventually, Sonny.”

“Now are you mad?”

“Depends,” Usnavi smirked and nodded up slightly. “How long’s it been?”

He looked back down at his hand. “A few months,” he mumbled.

“I’m a little upset,” Usnavi smiled. “But, as long as you’re both happy and he’s good to you.” Sonny looked back up at him with a small smile on his face. “You can stay until he wakes up. Check his bandages, do whatever, but I still expect you to work today.” He nodded as his cousin smiled and walked to the door. He turned back for a split second, returned the smile, then walked out of the apartment.


	2. The Next Morning

While Usnavi worked the register, the regulars came in for their usual coffee. It was pretty uneventful, until Daniela and Carla came in.

“Hey Usnavi~,” Carla smiled.

He sighed. “What?” He handed them their coffees and they paid. He only used that tone because knew that there were questions coming just by her tone of voice. He was a bit distracted with putting the money in the register that he wasn’t really paying attention to what he would say.

“Sonny’s okay, right? I mean, the real heat of the riot  _ was  _ around the bodega.”

“Yeah, he’s good. I mean, he wasn’t alone so-” He cut himself off, not bothering to finish his sentence.

“Well, I  _ know _ that  _ you  _ weren’t  _ here  _ during the riot. If it wasn’t you, then who was it?” She had that devilish smirk on her face.

“He’ll have to tell you himself.”

“Usnavi, you and I both know that Sonny wouldn’t do that over his dead body.”

“What wouldn’t I do over my dead body,” Sonny asked, his voice slightly groggy. He must have fallen back asleep. Although, the suspicious thing was his clothes. He was wearing a sweater with a large hood that bunched at the shoulders.

Carla’s eyes flickered from the hood to Sonny’s face before she smiled. “You’re not being subtle, Sonny~,” she laughed in a sing-song voice. “Tell me, who was it?”

“Who what?” He rolled his shoulder, adjusting the hood slightly.

“Who was here with you?”

“Oh.” He must have still been half asleep because what he said next surprised the three in front of him. “Pete and I were hanging out, and he set the Roman Candle off as a distraction. He burned his hand, so I patched it up.” He shrugged. “Nothing huge.”

“Sonny, cut the crap. What’s with the sweater?”

“He’s a little shellshocked from the riot last night. He gets cold when he panics, so it’s just precaution,” Pete yelled from outside, presumably from the fire escape. This was confirmed when they saw him jump down and walk down the street like nothing had happened. Although, there was a bit of confidence in his walk.

“How would he know that,” Daniela asked.

“We’ve been friends for years, do you think this is the first time I’ve panicked in front of him?” His shoulders relaxed, and it revealed the true reason for the sweater.

The first thing that Carla did was gasp, then she busted out laughing.

“I  _ told _ you that you weren’t subtle,” she gasped through her laughter.

“What do you-” He felt up his neck, realizing at that moment that the hood had moved again. He just froze. The good part was that Usnavi couldn’t see it from the angle he was standing at.

“What’s so funny,” Usnavi asked as Sonny pulled the hood back up.

“Nothing!” Sonny’s reply was too quick for comfort. His face reddened.

“ _Sonny parece tener un poco de chupetón en el clavícula_ _ , _ ” Daniela chuckled, and Usnavi just glared at his cousin. Sonny shrunk into the jacket, trying to hide the shame on his face.

“Sonny?” Usnavi’s glare bore into him.

“It was an accident, I swear,” he squeaked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sonny parece tener un poco de chupetón en el clavícula: Sonny seems to have a little hickey on his collarbone


	3. Word Travels Quickly

“It kind of just happened, and I already smacked him upside the head so please don’t hurt him.”

Usnavi sighed. “You’re off the hook this time. Next time it happens and I find out, he’s gonna have to talk to  _ me _ . Is that clear?” Sonny nodded. “Now, I need you to start restocking.  _ Seguir _ ,” Usnavi smiled. Sonny just hurried to the back room, seeming to be a mix of confident, scared, and calm.

“Thought you hated Pete,” Carla smirked.

“I can make an exception if he helps my cousin _ chill the fuck out _ .”

“What makes you think he’s chill?”

“Carla, he visibly relaxes around Pete. Also, he was so relaxed that he  _ explained _ what was going on. He never does that when he isn’t calm about the situation. Like, I caught him  _ red-handed _ , and he was still calm as hell.” A small smile appeared on his face. “If he can make Sonny  _ that  _ happy, I can learn to tolerate him at the very least.”

“You have a point there.”

 

\----

 

Later that day, when Usnavi uncharacteristically let him off the hook early, Sonny decided to go down to the salon to visit (and hear a bit of gossip. It’s funny sometimes.) He walked in, and Vanessa smiled at him.

“Hey there, Lover Boy,” she giggled. He contemplated giving her the finger, but decided against it.

“I’m guessing they told you?”

“That’s why you  _ shouldn’t’ve _ told them!”

“I didn’t!” His face flushed.

“How did they find out then?” Not wanting to explain, he just pulled the hood of the jacket down. “ _ Ohh _ ~” She smiled. “That makes sense.” The smile dropped from her face. “So, how long’s it been?”

“Few months,” he muttered.

“How did you hide it for that long?”

“It’s easier than you’d think,” he chuckled. “It’s  _ definitely _ easier when the person you’re dating is your best friend. Makes meeting up much easier.”

“What do you mean?”

“All that I had to tell Usnavi was ‘hey, I’m going to hang out with Pete’ and we’d usually do just that. But it also had more couple-y things with it, so it was really easy.” Sonny shrugged. “But, I mean, they don’t know the whole story of last night. I can let that little bit of info slide.”

“What do you mean?”

He leaned forward. “Okay, so Pete  _ was _ at the club. I called him not long before the blackout in the midst of a full-blown panic attack. I got lucky that he got to the apartment and I was calm before the power went out.”

“Sonny!” She stood. “Does your cousin  _ know _ that you had a panic attack?”

“No!” His face flushed. “He’d go into overprotective cousin mode, and I don’t need that!”

“If you won’t tell him, I will. This is a serious thing.” Nina, Carla, and Daniela looked over at them by this point.

“What’s going on,” Daniela asked.

“You know how Pete was over at Sonny and Usnavi’s apartment? Yeah, well it was because  _ Lover Boy _ here was having a panic attack and now is refusing to tell his cousin that it happened.”

“ _ Vanessa _ , calm down! This isn’t the first panic attack that I’ve had, so it’s become a non-serious issue at this point.” It was at that moment that he regretted what he came out of his mouth.

“ _ What?! _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seguir: Go on (Also translates to 'Follow')


	4. Mi Cielito

“Tell us why this is happening, so we can help,” Vanessa smiled, and Sonny’s face seemed to blank out. His hand trailed up to the pit at the base of his neck. He ran his thumb from the middle of the pit in a circle so it would bump up over the bone. He kept repeating this movement. “Sonny?”

“They left,” he whimpered. “They left.” Tears started falling down his face as the movement became sharper. The small chunk of skin under his moving finger started to turn red from the pressure and his finger white.

“Sonny, who left?”

“Everyone. Everyone’s leaving.” His whimpers turned to sobs.

“I-I’m going to go and find Pete. He seems to be the only one who knows what to do.” Nina hurried out the door and started running.

 

\----

 

Ten minutes later, she found Pete not far from the bodega.

“Pete!” She ran up to him. “Pete, I need your help.” He gave her a weird look.

“What’s wrong?” He pushed himself up from the wall. “Is everything okay?”

“It’s Sonny,” she panted out, trying to catch her breath. The look in his eyes changed, same with his demeanor.

“Where is he? What’s wrong? Is he hurt?”

“I… I think he’s having a panic attack. He’s at the salon, and it isn’t pretty.” He suddenly broke into a dead sprint towards the establishment with Nina following as closely behind as she could. With one final break of stamina, she just barely beat him to the salon. They walked in, and Pete walked to the front of Sonny.

“What were you guys talkin’ about before this happened,” Pete asked quietly as he pulled lightly at Sonny’s hand, trying to stop him from rubbing his skin raw.

“We were actually talking about you guys,” Carla smiled. “Why’s it important?”

“Specifics, Carla. Specifics,” he snapped, but his voice softened not even a second later. “Sorry. It helps me know how to help him.”

“Well…”

“We were talking about why you were over at the apartment last night, and he mentioned that the panic attacks were normal to him. We asked him to explain, and he sort of just locked up,” Vanessa frowned. “He started saying that everyone was leaving…? What did he mean?”

“Shit.” Tucking the smaller’s arm to his torso, Pete pulled Sonny in for a hug. He just turned his head and leaned it on Pete’s chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. “I’m right here, okay? No one’s leaving today, I promise. Everyone’s still here.” He kept saying things of that sort to Sonny as he rocked him back and forth. The other eventually came to his senses and started to sob into Pete’s chest. 

When his sobbing finally bubbled down to a small hiccup every few seconds, Pete smiled. “Hey,  _ mi cielito, _ how about you go to the bathroom and rinse your face while I explain to the girls what’s going on.” Sonny just nodded, but didn’t move to leave Pete’s grip. The taller pressed a small kiss to Sonny’s forehead and let him go, so the other just walked quickly to the bathroom. Pete was dead silent until he heard the door click and the sink running.

“Okay, now what’s going on?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mi cielito = my sky


	5. Love Does That To You

“So, Sonny has really bad abandonment issues,” Pete sighed. “That was why he had the panic attack last night. Usnavi was late coming home, so he got worried. That worry spiraled into panic, and he called me. You guys must have brought it up at some point for an attack to be triggered that quickly  _ and  _ that violently.”

“From what I’ve heard with panic attacks, you usually shouldn’t touch the person.” Carla frowned.

“It’s a little different with Sonny.” He smiled. “You see, most panic attacks are often caused by someone being overwhelmed because of a trigger that isn’t present. He, on the other hand, feels abandoned. It’s tactile comfort, and it works really well with him.” The smile dropped. “Still, he must have realized that he was in public. Usually when the attacks are  _ that _ bad, he starts screaming.”

“ _ Screaming _ ?” Daniela gave him a crazy look. “Why?”

“Attempt of compromise. He thinks the people around him are leaving, so large shows of emotion will stall that and allow possible negotiation.” He leaned most of his weight on his right foot and cocked his hip. “Now, from what I’ve heard, Usnavi’s been getting pretty close with you, ‘Nessa. That means he’s been coming downtown to see you at your apartment.” She nodded. “Also, Nina, you live the closest to the bodega?” He smiled. “So,” he turned to Vanessa, “you need to be ready for calls at any moment when Usnavi’s over, especially when he’s staying late.” 

“What do I have to do with this,” Nina snapped.

“I’m getting to that.” He turned to her. “We need to figure out if Usnavi’s going over to Vanessa’s house at any point in the next two weeks. I have to be downtown for some larger commissions, so I have to show you what to do if he has an attack at any point.” He clapped his hands together. “He usually doesn’t have them at work, so that narrows the timeframe down quite a bit. They’re most common when Usnavi hasn’t been home in at least three hours.”

“How have you picked up on all of this?” Nina gave him a look of confusion.

“I mean, I’ve been friends with him for years now. Also, as you all now know, I’ve been dating him for almost a year now. He’s has his patterns.”

“Wait a second,” Vanessa smiled, “I thought it had just been a  _ few  _ months. That’s what Sonny told me earlier.”

“‘Cause that’s what he told Usnavi. He was being vague because he thought Usnavi would be mad. In extension, he thinks that other people will be mad if they realize that he told people different times.” He shifted his weight to his other foot. “I told you, patterns.” Pete took in a deep breath. “I also know that he’s probably going to want to head back to the apartment when he’s done, so Nina, I’ll show you what to do. It’s nothing too hard. Some of his smallers ones he can be talked down from, like the one he had here. Just remember that tactile comfort is your best bet.” He stopped for a second. “Now, if he ends up with a more serious one, you’ll have to restrain him.”

“ _ What? _ ”

“He’ll try to run, he’ll thrash, and he’ll  _ probably  _ end up scratching, but he just doesn’t know what he’s doing. His first response is to find whoever he’s looking for. Remember to keep talking to him. The first thing to ask is who he’s looking for. It’s usually Usnavi, since he’s pretty much the only family he has left. Call him, tell him to come back immediately.” He sighed. “Now, the first thing he’s going to do when Usnavi gets back is that he is going to flip a shit on him. He’s going to cuss Usnavi out  _ big time _ , but just let him do it. You can let go of him at this point. Then he’s going to cling to him, and probably flip out on him again.”

“But  _ why _ ?”

“I told you, abandonment issues.” They all turned when they heard the bathroom door click open. Sonny walked out, looking a bit better than he had just a few minutes ago. He walked to Pete and leaned on him, and the taller responded by wrapping his arm around Sonny’s shoulder.

“M’cold,” he mumbled and started shivering, despite the jacket and the heat. He seemed to curl further into Pete’s side.

“Told’ya, he gets cold when he panics,” Pete laughed. “That’s also my cue to take him back to the apartment.” He dropped his hand down to Sonny’s hips and started to lead him out of the salon. No one spoke until the two were out of eyeshot.

“Guess he’s not as bad of a kid as we thought,” Vanessa smiled. “He seems to care a whole lot for Sonny.”

“Love does that to you,” Nina smiled as they all returned to work.


	6. Coming Clean

Five blankets, another sweater, and two cups of coffee later, Sonny was in a blanket cocoon and leaning on Pete’s chest. Pete was sitting cross-legged and was leaning back on the couch. He held the cup of coffee close to him, trying to absorb the heat from it.

“Sonny, I’m telling Usnavi when he closes shop today,” Pete sighed before taking a sip of his coffee.

“You can’t tell him,” he croaked out. “Please, you can’t.”

“ _ Mi cielito _ , I have no choice at this point. I held it off because it seemed like you were getting better. The attack in the salon shows that we can’t work through this with just us, okay?” He gave Sonny a somber smile as the other nodded. Pete, now done with his coffee, set his cup down and started to run his hand through Sonny’s short hair.

The two returned to their silence, and Sonny was about to fall asleep if it wasn’t for Usnavi swinging the door open. Pete slowly trailed his hand out of Sonny’s hair.

“Is everything alright,” Usnavi asked slowly.

“Might I be able to talk to you in the kitchen,” Pete smiled. The other just nodded, so the two walked in there.

“What’s this about?”

“It’s about Sonny.” Pete leaned on the counter. Usnavi’s face blanked out for a second, but he made an assumption and it distorted with anger.

“Pete, I’ve been lenient. You will no-”

“-No!” Pete started laughing as his face flushed when he realized what Usnavi thought that he was going to say. He put his face in his hands as he laughed before looking back up. “No, it’s nothing like  _ that _ , Usnavi.”

“Then what is it?”

“Sonny has severe abandonment issues, and I’ve been doing all the research that I can. We need to discuss how to help him.”

“What do you mean?”

“ _ ¿Es grueso en la cabeza? _ ” He reached forward and tapped Usnavi twice on the forehead. “He has a  _ fucking panic attack _ every time that you’re gone for longer than, like, three hours! The kid’s terrified that you’re not coming back, and you have yet to notice?” He huffed. “Listen, this has been happening for a while.”

“Why is this the first time it’s been brought up then?”

“Let me get to that.” He ran a hand over his face. “Now, I didn’t say anything for two reason. One was that Sonny didn’t want you to know. The other is that  _ I _ thought that he was getting better. He had a panic attack at the salon about an hour ago. He’s still in the mental cooldown.” He looked over at Sonny, who was fiddling with his hands, and smiled. “I finally got him to agree to widen his support system. Now, there’s a few thing that need to happen to help him recover. He most likely won’t recover completely, but it will be manageable. First, you’re going to have to tell him where you’re going and for how long. If it changes, call him.”

“What if I can’t?”

“Nina knows what to do if he has a panic attack, since I won’t be here for the next two weeks because of some downtown commissions that I have to do. Carla, Daniela, and Vanessa also heard my explanation of what to do, so they know as well.”

“So, one question.” Usnavi smiled. “Why is he wrapped in five blankets?”

“I told you, he gets cold when he panics. He’s also still in the mental cooldown, so he’s going to be a little jumpy and shaky.”

“ _ Mi amado _ , stop  _ worrying _ ,” Sonny laughed from the living room, his voice thick with sleep. Pete spun on his heels, and saw that he had made a small bed-like patch in his bundle of blankets and was using a clump from it as a pillow. He just smiled.

“I’ll stop worrying when I’m dead~,  _ mi cielito _ ,” he laughed in a sing-song voice and spun back to Usnavi, who was shifting his weight from one foot to the other and looking impatient. “Do you have anywhere you’re going?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ¿Es grueso en la cabeza?: Are you thick in the head?
> 
> Mi amado: My love/My beloved

**Author's Note:**

> YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO IF YOU LIKE HAMILTON AND LAMS, YOU CAN CHECK OUT MY OTHER REALLY COOL ACCOUNT 'IMINHAMILTONHELL' WOOOOOOOOO


End file.
